Thank you again so much to Kelsey Lyons for the copy of The Book of Joy by the Dalai Lama and Bishop Tutu!!!  I’ve been re-reading it lately and last night I went back through the chapters about gratitude and compassion.  The section on perspective really sunk in again as well a couple of nights ago as you could see by the post yesterday.  As often happens my brain soaked in more than I thought and I was looking at the world very differently when I woke up this morning.

When my alarm went off I laid there for a second and felt how stiff and sore my legs were.  Remembering the book I paused and said to myself, “How lucky am I to be alive this morning?  How fortunate am I to have a body that is capable of exercise?  How wonderful is it that I am able to spend quiet time with Becky doing something so healthy and fulfilling?”  I couldn’t help but smile and get out of bed.

While running Becky and I talked about many things and it reminded me of perspective again.  In every moment of every day I have the opportunity to determine how I will view a situation.  If I am in a bad mood or seeing something negatively it is entirely my fault and I need to find a way to change it.  Not only change my perspective, but find a way to learn from it and be thankful for the opportunity to learn and grow.

For lunch today I really wanted to go for a walk but had second thoughts due to the heat and my sore muscles.  My mind went back to the thought of gratitude and I realized that I wasn’t looking at it the right way.  This was a beautiful day to go for a walk!  The sun was out, there was a little breeze, and the exercise in the heat would strengthen me, not break me.  I headed out and enjoyed a wonderful stroll that allowed me to take a deep breath and think through several challenges I have in front of me at work.

My normal path took me through the cemetery.  Yup, you could say it’s morbid, but I find it quite motivational.  As I walked through I kept thinking about how thankful I am to be alive.  It led me to think about what they would like to do over if they had more time which then reminded me of what is truly important in life.  As I walked I thought about how fortunate I am to be alive to enjoy those important moments more.  I was thankful for all their grave stones reminded me of.

About midway through the cemetery loop I happened across and older gentleman.  As we passed we both smiled at each other.  He looked at me and said, “We must be a couple of walking diehards, huh?” as his smile spread even bigger across his face.  Mine did the same as I agreed with him.  It was a moment of bonding and companionship.  We both were congratulating the other for finding the reason to go out instead of using the heat as an excuse to do something we enjoy.  That moment was pretty cool.

At work there were a couple of times in which my mind kept returning to that thought of gratitude.  Even though certain things are definitely challenging they are opportunities to grow and learn.  In some cases I was thankful for past painful lessons that helped me guide others through their own challenges.  Had I not struggled and failed in the past I wouldn’t have been able to help, or even worse, I might have hurt them with my advice.  Funny how after the fact it’s so much more clear that something was a great learning experience instead of a really difficult time.

Throughout the day my attitude, mindset and life were impacted by those wonderful lessons from The Book of Joy.  I highly recommend it to anyone who could use a little nudge to help them through the challenges they may be facing.  It’s well worth the time to read and inspires me on an almost daily basis.  Today those lessons really stood out loud and clear and I was thankful for each of them.

Thanks!!!

This morning I attempted to be as disciplined as Becky so I set my alarm to wake up early and get an extra run in while she lifted weights.  Sadly, my dreams won for about 15 minutes before I finally got my butt in gear.  This was the first time in quite a while that I had a truly solo run, no Becky, no dogs, just me.

My runs with Becky are awesome and I truly appreciate each of them. They’re a great way for us to seemingly cheat time by creating some extra time for the two of us to be together throughout the day.  Once in a while it is nice to run by myself.  I appreciate the runs with her more after I run alone as I can see how much she motivates me to stay on pace as well as how much more quickly the run goes when we’re talking and spending time together versus alone.  It reminds me to be grateful for this tradition we’ve established.

I also enjoy having the time to myself to just let my thoughts drift.  Nowhere in particular, they just drift in different directions.  While running this morning that feeling was amplified by the fog that had settled into the Mississippi River Valley.  The combination of running alone, listening to some great music – Soul to Squeeze by RHCP, letting my thoughts just drift and seeing the view below led to a run that felt more like a capricious dream than a workout.  It was amazing and soul soothing at the same time.

The other thing that I am thankful for I am not quite sure how to put into words without getting into detail that isn’t necessary and almost takes away from the concept.  Here’s the long and short of it…

In every event that happens to us we have the opportunity to choose how we view the event, good or bad, happy or tragic.  The label we apply to it, the perspective we choose depends completely on us.

I could look at the death of my dad as the worst thing I’ve experienced thus far in life.  It would be so easy to hold onto the sadness, loneliness, and feeling of no control.  I could sit on a throne of pity and ask every person I meet to sympathize with me.  This one event could consume me and even become my identity in a horrible way if I let it. It could a huge source of fear and weakness that would be the downfall of my happiness.

Or…

I could look at the death of Dad as a part of the natural cycle of life, something that was bound to happen and would happen regardless of my thoughts and wishes.  As such, instead of feeling sad I could use this as a source of knowledge to bring more joy to my life.  I can use his death as a way to learn more about life and death.  His death can help me to help others through difficult times.  I can pause and just feel all the love that was shared by so many friends and family during that time and I’ll never feel lonely for as long as I live.  It can be a tremendous reservoir of strength that can power me to do right through any challenge. As odd as it sounds to write, I can be thankful for his death as it has helped me to be a better and more joyful person.

The choice is up to me. The event is the same, the only difference is my perspective. Only I can make the choice.

Today I’ve chosen the right mindset and was able to do right by others specifically because of what I learned through losing Dad.  I know he is smiling from up above as he would be so happy to see how that experience has changed me.  I’m thankful for taking the time to choose the right way to view his passing today.

Thanks!

When the boys and I headed home after getting haircuts last night I had this weird feeling that I’d forgotten something.  My mind raced and I realized that I’d forgotten my laptop.  Still driving, I quickly realized that I had it in my hands when I left.  A lightbulb went off and I quickly yet ever so delicately pulled onto the next side road.  Yup, my hunch was right…

By some crazy act of God and purely wild luck my laptop had managed to stay on the roof of my car for about a dozen blocks!  How ridiculous is that???  While it happened yesterday there were several times today (often while entering and exiting my car) that the memory popped into my brain and had me laughing at myself while being very grateful for my incredible fortune.  The even sillier thing is that this was the second time it’s happened, and the first time my iPad stayed on the roof for a couple of miles!  I am so thankful for that crazy string of luck!

This morning I received a very nice and motivating note from one of my closest college friends about my writing and gratitude.  My smile widened as I read his note and saw that he’s been keeping a dream journal for the past 6 weeks and counting – great job Brian!!!

Later in the day my inbox contained an email from my cousin who also commented on the impact my blog has made on her and how many people read it and are inspired by it.  Thanks Julie!!!

Both of those messages warmed my heart and they inspire me to keep doing this every day for the rest of my life.  There is only thing more motivating for me to keep this blog going every day than the joy it brings me…  bringing a little extra joy to the lives of others.  Thank you both so much for these notes, they fill me with happiness and strengthen my sense of purpose.

Thanks!!!

This is starting to line up to be the week of being thankful for something first thing in the morning!  Not gonna lie, having something amazing first thing in the morning really starts the day off in a wonderful way.

Today I hadn’t even gotten out of bed before I was smiling from ear to ear.  When the alarm went off on my watch I rolled over and grabbed my phone to check the weather.  As it powered on I saw that I had Facebook notifications due to being tagged in a post by my friend Kelsey.  Here’s what I saw when I hopped on Facebook…

Words cannot even begin to express the joy her post brought to my heart and soul this morning.  Of course the pride of recognition felt wonderful, but it was much more than that.  As I read her post I knew Dad was smiling from ear to ear for having turned his loss into a source of inspiration for others.  Starting off my morning with this helped me focus on my purpose and reminded me to live an even better day of my values today to live into her post.  Before my feet touched the floor this morning Kelsey had inspired me to be the best version of myself that I could be.

To be honest, throughout the day there were several choices that I made differently specifically because of this shifted mindset early in the morning.  I immediately viewed a long days (leaving the house at 5:30am and not getting back to town until 7pm) as a wonderful opportunity to interact with more people.  Instead of listening to a podcast I fired up The Book of Joy (earlier given to me by Kelsey) as it would remind me of simple lessons to keep in mind as I took on the day.  Several times I paused before reacting negatively and did my best to put myself in someone else’s shoes before making assumptions.  There were conversations that came out much more positively as I took time to think about how to bring more joy and happiness to others.  All in all, it’s been a fantastic day that has been made better specifically from starting the morning off with this incredible gift from Kelsey.

Kelsey, thank you so much for this gift first thing in the morning!  The impact that it had on my day and the way I interacted with others was amazing and greatly appreciated.  For reals, I have to echo what you said in your post, “You have helped me more than you’ll ever know!”  Thanks dude!!!

Thanks!!!

While I am getting better and better at watching what I eat weekends like this past one definitely throw a money wrench into the plan.  Now that I think about it, it’s really not the weekend so much as my giving in to temptation that causes it to derail.  From the point I got out of bed until the time I headed out for our run I felt sluggish, bloated, lazy and just off.  I felt like I was just moving a little slower than I normally would be and my clothes were just a little less comfy than normal.  Describing the sensation in  a word, I felt gross.

The nice thing about feeling gross is that it’s a great decision point.  Do I stuff my face with comfort food and give in because I’ve already lost or do I choose to get my butt in gear and getting back to work?  It’s as simple as that.  This morning I chose to power through a great run to start getting the the residue of bad eating choices out of my system.

The girls were still in the kennel from the weekend so Becky and I headed out without them.  Usually when we go for our run we need to stop for them several times and I will often walk for a little bit and it’s pretty leisurely.  Without the girls as an excuse I decided to punish myself a little and headed out at a much faster pace than normal.  Of course Becky had no issue with the faster pace, I’m pretty sure she would have even gone faster 🙂

The first mile was a little rough, but I kept pushing through it and by the time we were a couple of miles in I was feeling great.  By a few miles in I was feeling so good that the last mile was one of the fastest I’ve done in quite some time and it felt AWESOME!!!

I’ve still got a lot of work to do to get back on track after my eating this weekend, but this was a pretty awesome first step.  In future mornings I’ll keep this memory in the back of my head to remind me why I love running so much.  Being able to essentially give myself a “cleanse” to start the week helped me re-wire my brain back to where it should be.  I’ve already made better eating choices and know that will continue for the rest of the week.  Getting back on track for the week after a cleansing run like this is relatively easy.

Thanks!!!

Today is the 998th straight day I’ve blogged which means I’m only a few days away from a pretty significant milestone…  four digits!  How crazy is that???  Every single day I’ve spent time writing about something I’ve been thankful for that day, and I’ve done my best to not repeat too many things.  While some have certainly blended pretty close to each other they’ve always been at least a little different or looked at the same thing through a slightly different lens.

As I close in on my 1,000th post I’ve found myself being more and more thankful for taking the time to blog.  It’s given me the reason to stop and give thanks for what I have each day and has brought so much more joy into my life than I’d ever imagined.  Someone in a TED Talk put it in a very wonderful way, “happiness wanting what you have, not having what you want.”  In taking time to write it’s helped me stay focused on the right side of the equation.

In taking the time to appreciate this process I would be remiss to not take time to be thankful for the original engineers of this blog, my parents.  Without their never ending love and positive energy this blog would never have happened.  They are the ones who showed me by example how to live a joyful life, how to share happiness, how to always stay positive, and to grit out any challenges life throws my way with a smile.

Don’t get me wrong, they weren’t perfect either, but they were the most incredible role models I could ever hope to have had growing up.  Every step of the way I knew they loved me unconditionally, believed in my ability to accomplish anything, and were always willing to do whatever was needed to help me grow.  In some cases it was support, others cases it was a kick in the ass, and other times it was friendship and humor at the right time.

I’ve been blessed to have parents who taught me at a very early age to be thankful for everything in life, especially each wonderful moment we are granted.  When times were good they were thankful, when times were bad they were thankful.  They would look to the positive and try to find the upside in every situation, regardless of how dire.  They helped me understand that by being thankful for adversity and fighting through it that I could accomplish anything I could dream.

If I think of my blog as a building that’s been built one brick at a time, day by day, my parents are the engineers and architects of it.  They’ve helped me understand the importance of gratitude and being thankful while both coaching it and living it.  They were the ones who taught me how to pause for a moment and just take in the moment and appreciate it.

Mom and Dad, thanks for being the original designers of this blog.  Without either of you this wouldn’t have grown and I would’t have the joy in my life today that I have.  Love you!!!

Thanks!!!